DMC: Sacrifice
by Musela
Summary: So who's the sacrifice??? ~ My first fanfic so please R&R (even if it's negative (sob)) ~ Work in progress
1. Default Chapter

Disclaimer (of course): All characters in this story are fictional. Dante and all DMC characters are of Capcom. I do not own any of the Devil May Cry characters. AND this story is fictional. (winking) Really it is.  
  
This is my first fanfic. Thought I'd give it a try. It's done in present tense. Enjoy and thanks!  
DMC: Sacrifice Chapter 1  
  
On a trip to Turkey, my friend and I decide to go to the local tourists sites to check out the history of the city and the country.  
  
"Oooo, let's go in here," Nikki says tugging at my arm. My brow wrinkles as I let out a sigh, "uh. okay. I guess."  
  
As soon as we enter the doors, Nikki's staring at the ceiling with eyes sparkling. She looks like a little kid. I just stare at her and shake my head.  
  
I hear her mumble something, "Oh, my, God." She grabs my arm and squeezes, "Would you look at this place? It's awesome in here."  
  
I nod my head, "mm. hmm. And why are we in here?" I ask.  
  
"It's a museum. Don't you want to see what's inside this place?" She answers as she rolls her eyes and gives me a smirk.  
  
"Oooo, oooh. Cooool." I say sarcastically.  
  
She hits me in the arm. "Let's go this way."  
  
I look in the direction she's pointing. There are tall columns with statues of what looks like Romans to me. Unimpressed, I reply with, "What's over there?"  
  
Nikki looks at me and sighs, "Do you always have to sound so uninterested?" I look at her. She continues on sounding a little irate, "And where would you like to go?"  
  
Every other path or door looks uninteresting to me. A door to a jungle, a passage to a Romanesque looking area, dinosaurs. or something like dinosaurs, clothing and accessories of the dead (ancestors), and the one thing that actually catches my attention, the dark and foreboding gothic area.  
  
As I scan the open area of the museum after looking quite rapidly, I look in the direction of interest and point.  
  
"You have got to be kidding me. You want to go in there?" Nikki says sounding pretty disappointed. "Well. How about this? We'll go our separate ways, and we'll just meet up somewhere. This place isn't that big so it's not like we'd get lost."  
  
I smile. "Cool. See yah later." All I hear is a big sigh as I walk away. 


	2. Chapter 2

Upon entering the area, I look up to see gargoyles above the massive door. Actually, they look more like giant man goats. I'm not sure what they are, all I know is they look like they are guarding the entrance to the place. I shudder.  
  
As I walk further into the passage looking at all of the statues, I notice how life-like they are.  
  
Wow, they look so real. I get an uneasy feeling. My eyes scan the room, looking left and right.  
  
"Okay, why am I so freaked out?" I whisper, thinking someone would hear me. You know, come to think of it. I haven't seen anyone else around. I guess I was distracted by the scary art. I turn around to face the way I came in. Walking a little quicker.  
  
Okay, I know I came in from this way. Thinking I was getting closer to the entrance I start to hasten my steps.  
  
Where there once was an opening, there now stands a wall.  
  
Eh... okay, I know I didn't get lost that quickly. I sigh and turn back around. Okay, what has happened here? The area looks as if it has changed. What seemed like an area with passages now looks like a huge room. Candles line the room every so few feet and the light from the candles casts an amber glow on the walls. The room even has a musty, mildew smell to it. It kind of reminds me of a castle.  
  
"Okay, this isn't funny!" I yell.  
  
All I hear is the echo of my voice.  
  
"Is someone there? Hello?!" I try again hoping to get a response. "This isn't funny! If I find out who's doing this I'm going to kick your ass!" Still no sound. I look around wide-eyed thinking that adding the cuss word would make someone think I meant business.  
  
I take a step into the center of the room. Nothing. I take another step. I hear a noise from behind one of the statues that lines the walls.  
  
I take a quick breath, "Who's there?"  
  
The sound of my breathing is getting quite annoying. I try to stand still and hold my breath. Nothing. I take another step trying to get to the other side of the room. I see something move in the distance.  
  
Okay, what was that? I hope I was just seeing things. I put my hands on my face and mumble, ".get a hold of yourself. You're freaking yourself out."  
  
My hands back to my sides, I look back in the direction of the movement. I squint thinking I could get a better look. The area is dark and full of shadows. I see a pair of red dots. It blinks.  
  
"Gasp!" I rub my eyes thinking it is just a glare from the candles. They are still there. It blinks again.  
  
I back up and trip over my feet landing on my butt. "Ooow." I try to scramble back to my feet. While trying to push myself up from the floor, I see the red dots in the midst of the shadows, but this time those red dots actually look like eyes. They are staring at me. Watching me. I swallow hard.  
  
The red eyes move slightly towards me. I back up a bit. It moves closer in my direction. It looks as though the shadows behind it are following the red eyes.  
  
"What the.?" I say, under my breath.  
  
What looks like a shadow is actually the form of the beast. The red eyes are attached to the body of a cat. At least, I think it's a cat. A black panther of some sort except it looks like I am looking at it through water. The body looks like that of black smoke bending to the beasts every will.  
  
I rub my eyes thinking my vision is just playing tricks on me. Closer it comes. I back up and turn around to run, but my momentum is halted because there now stands another. It paces as though it could not wait to do something.  
  
"Wha.?" I stand there wondering what to do next. I feel another presence. I look to the area where I once stood, and there is another one. All three beasts pace and circle me. I feel panic trying to overcome me.  
  
I look around feeling hopeless. What do I do now? What can I do to defend myself? Then remembering I have a backpack, I remove it from my back thinking I could use it to defend myself as much as I can.  
  
Thinking it would relax my nerves, I mumble, "Oh, like that's going to hurt that big kitty." I look around nervously, "Help."  
  
One of the beasts lunges at me. I move quickly to avoid its attack and at the same time smack it on the head with my pack.  
  
I think I pissed it off more than hurt it. It turns around and shakes its head. Another one slashes at me with its claws. I try to move, but I'm too slow, and I end up getting a couple of cuts in my arm.  
  
"Aaah!" I look down at my arm. I don't even have enough time to assess the damage before I'm attacked again. I duck to avoid the next assailant. As soon as the beast passes over me, I run the opposite direction while trying to avoid the other two.  
  
"I'm definitely going to die if I don't get out of." Just then I felt this sharp pain across the outside of my right arm, ". ah." I turn to see. One of the cats has a spike protruding from its body. In fact, it is coming from its body. In the corner of my eye, I can see that another one of the beasts is getting closer. I turn around to face them all.  
  
I have all three beasts in sight, but nowhere to run. All I can do is back up and try to avoid. Two of the beasts stop, but the third one keeps approaching ever so slowly.  
  
God, this is torture. What are they doing? Why don't you kill me all ready? I decide to be brave and go for the one approaching. With hand ready to swing, I dash for the beast and yell, ".but make it fast!"  
  
The beast jumps to the side. It was expecting my attack. Oh, great, I'm definitely dead now. I try to slow down to match its movements.  
  
I need to figure out what it's up to.  
  
Just when I am about to try another brave dash, it lunges, stops and then stares at me. I back up a bit. It takes a step closer.. Because I am too caught up with this ones action, I forget about the other two. I'm pounced on from behind.  
  
"Oh, yeah?" I try to dodge the attack, ".."  
  
I feel pain pierce through my chest, a very sharp and painful throb. I look down. There is a spike sticking through the middle of my chest the size of my arm. I grab at my chest and let out a short breath. The pain is so excruciating. I grit my teeth and look around at the beasts. I see two.  
  
Where's the third one? Oh, I see.  
  
They move ever so slightly closer and closer. I feel the spike leave my chest quickly, exiting from behind. I fall to my knees still holding my chest as though I'm trying to keep the blood from leaving my body, or maybe I'm just trying to stop the pain. I keep getting closer to the floor. I try to hold myself up. I tightly shut my eyes to try and focus. The room seems to be spinning. I open my eyes and look at the floor. A pool of blood forms beneath me. I feel faint.  
  
I can't let them take me like this. Am I dreaming? Please let this be a dream. The room starts to darken, and my eyes close. 


	3. Chapter 3

Dante walks down a long corridor leading to a big musty room. He slowly approaches the dark opening of the room. With Rebellion on his back, he steadily grips the hilt ready to draw the sword at any moment. Crouching slightly, easing foot over foot, Dante peeks through the door.  
  
In the middle of the room, there are three Shadows circling something lying on the floor. Dante squints his eyes trying to see what has these cats' attention.  
  
Lightning strikes the floor, shattering the stone. Dante leans against the wall making sure no one sees him. Or maybe the lightning just startles him a little. Whatever it is, Dante leans back towards the opening to look again.  
  
More lightning and thunder start to strike at the Shadows. They scramble in confusion trying to avoid the bolts. Dante laughs under his breath.  
  
Even with all the dodging and scrambling, the Shadows are struck down. Stone dust, rubble, and the smell of cinder now fills the room.  
  
Thinking the coast is clear; Dante tries to move into the room, but changes his mind upon hearing a couple of voices.  
  
Two robed men appear out of nowhere, one in red and the other in brown.  
  
"Oh, what a mess. What are we going to do?"  
  
"."  
  
The man in the red robe just moves towards the body on the floor.  
  
"She wasn't supposed to be here. We need to get rid of the body."  
  
The red robed man lifts his hand to silence his companion.  
  
"But." his companion tries to pipe in.  
  
"Shhhhh. I'll take care of this. Have the others prepare. and don't forget about him." The red robed man points in the direction of where Dante stands. Dante's eyes widen. He then feels a heavy object being struck at the back of his neck.  
  
**********  
  
"Asezzz. zarek. (chants)." the red robed man is standing next to an altar with the body of a naked woman. He holds his hand out, "hand me the dagger. (more chanting)." He looks over at a robed man standing next to another altar with the shackled shirtless body of a man upon it.  
  
Chanting, the robed man grabs the arm of the man lying there and unclasps the shackles from his wrist. Another robed man leans in and places a goblet underneath the wrist. The robed man holding the wrist continues to chant. He then places a small dagger at the wrist and slices it letting blood drip into the goblet. While this is happening the red robed man is exacting the same ritual to the female at his altar. Not stopping until the goblet was full.  
  
Soon after, they exchange goblets and continue the chant.  
  
"Feldes de riit omnebdi quo." Both robed men tilt the goblets above the bodies on the altar. They begin to drip the blood onto the chest of their victims only placing a slight line of blood.  
  
There are three other robed men standing around waiting for commands to be issued. As if reading minds, one robed man moves next to each altar in assistance.  
  
"Did you find out the name of this lady?" The man in the red robe questions his companion.  
  
The man nods, "Yes, Sir. Her name is Alma Lyn"  
  
The red robed man looks over at the other altar and nods his head. Each assistant opens the mouth of each victim.  
  
"Let these two, Dante Sparda and Alma Lyn, be forever entwined. Bonded by blood and soul, never to be separated." The red robed man begins to pour the blood into the mouth of Alma Lyn. While the other robed man pours Alma's blood into Dante's mouth.  
  
After pouring the blood into Alma's mouth, the red robed man starts chanting in another language, "Jusepjeya doren tokomjate. Let there be life!" He continues to chant.  
  
He stretches his arms above his head. Something shines. It's a dagger, but this dagger is slightly different. The blade is not solid. It is hollow from hilt to tip.  
  
He places the dagger above the intended target and stabs right into Alma's heart.  
  
"Hurry, hurry, we must do this quick." The red robed man holds out his hand as if waiting for something to be placed in it. His companion places a bowl in his hand.  
  
The red robed man begins to slowly pour the contents of the bowl into the hilt of the Fewnel dagger empting it in the process. Once empty, he removes the dagger slowly from Alma's heart. Blood trickles from the tip of the dagger into the bloodied hole it left behind. He stops as if waiting. The hole starts to close as if healing at an accelerated rate. The blood that soaks Alma's chest begins to absorb itself into her body.  
  
"Ahh, good. It worked." The red robed man says in relief. "Come. We must leave quickly. Before they wake." And with that, the place empties as soon as the last words were uttered. 


	4. Chapter 4

My eyes open and all I see is a stone ceiling barely visible in the candlelit room.  
  
"It's freaking cold in here."  
  
I sit up to survey my surroundings.  
  
I see a couple of stone pillars, a folded up robe by my feet, and a man lying on an altar next to me.  
  
"Why am I so cold?" I look down and see my bare breasts. "Gasp. I'm naked?!" I place my arms over my chest and look around.  
  
I jump off the altar and grab the robe placing it over my head trying to put it on.  
  
"Yeah, right, like that guy saw me."  
  
I know that he's alive, because I can see his chest rise and fall from his breathing.  
  
I hear a groan and duck down.  
  
".uhhh. my head."  
  
I peek over the altar. I can see the man move slightly.  
  
"(Clank). What the.?" He moves his head and look at his arms and legs. He starts to struggle, "What the hell? Who the hell?"  
  
He stops moving as if something caught his attention. He turns his head and sees me peering up from the side of my altar.  
  
"Hey."  
  
I duck back down pressing my back up against the stone.  
  
"I know you're there. Hey, can you help me? Or are you here to kill me? I could get myself out of this predicament, but there seems to be a spell holding these shackles down. Hello?"  
  
I didn't know what to do. Who is this guy? And where the hell am I?  
  
I clear my throat, "I don't know who you are, but I'm definitely not here to kill you."  
  
No response.  
  
I turn back around and poke my head up to peek. He looks in my direction as if he knew I was going to pop back up.  
  
"Gasp." And back down I go again.  
  
His brow wrinkles in confusion, "Uh, I'm not going to hurt you. If that's what you think. Can you help me out or not?"  
  
Not moving an inch, I ask, "What do you want me to do?"  
  
An eyebrow lifts, "Help me out of these shackles?"  
  
"How do I know I can trust you? What if you're chained down for a reason?"  
  
I hear a big sigh.  
  
"Then why are YOU here?" He asks.  
  
I sit there and ponder. Now that's a good question. Why am I here?  
  
"I don't know. I just woke up and I was just lying here. Don't confuse me anymore than what I all ready am." I place my head in my hands.  
  
"You know, this would go a lot easier if you would just help me out."  
  
"And what if I don't?"  
  
He rolls his eyes, "then I'll have to kill yah."  
  
I stand up and yell, "You said you weren't going to hurt me!"  
  
He looks at me and smirks, "It's about time you finally showed yourself.(what the?). You're not very intimidating."  
  
"Intimidating? What do you mean?" I ask, walking a few steps closer, "I'm not here to intimidate you."  
  
He laughs, "Are you going to help me?"  
  
"No."  
  
"Why not?"  
  
"Because I'm afraid."  
  
"Afraid of what?"  
  
I stare at him for a while, "You."  
  
He laughs again, "Me? I haven't done anything to you yet. What makes you think I'd hurt you?"  
  
"Well. Yet? Yyeet?!" My eyes narrow and I start to storm away.  
  
All of a sudden, I hear the sound of metal hitting the stone floor, and a hand grabs my wrist.  
  
"Ah, let go. Let go!"  
  
"You think I'm going to let you go? I wasn't born yesterday, you know," his other hand breaks free of its shackles.  
  
I stare feeling very afraid. I gasp, "I thought you said you couldn't' get out?!" I start to struggle trying to twist free of his grasp.  
  
"Oh, no, you don't." He sits up and pulls me towards him keeping a firm grip on my wrist.  
  
Trying to pry his hand off my wrist, I yell, "Let me go! What do you want from me?!"  
  
He keeps his hand tight on my wrist while his other hand is trying to break the confines of his legs. "You need to quit squirming so I can get out of this."  
  
I continue squirming. A thought comes to my mind and I decide to bite his hand, but he lifts my arm up and almost suspends me in the air.  
  
"Heh. Nice try, Babe." He kicks and finally breaks free of his shackles.  
  
I stare at him. Fear welling in my eyes, I dare not breathe.  
  
He gets up off the altar, while still holding my arm. He stands there and looks at me with his other hand on his hip.  
  
"Now, you gonna tell me what's going on? Or am I going to have to." He purposely leaves the sentence open for me to fill in. His eyes narrow.  
  
"You tricked me," I say.  
  
Oh, God, I'm scared. What do I do now? I look at him trembling. At least, I think I'm trembling. I must not let him know I'm afraid.  
  
He cocks his head and is about to say something.  
  
I interrupt, "please, please don't hurt me." So much for showing him I wasn't afraid.  
  
He laughs, "I'm not going to hurt you." He eyes me up and down.  
  
I just stare at him. No emotions showing. Do I believe him?  
  
Fear consumes a lot of a person's mind, and I almost forget about my other hand. Without a second thought, I hit him.  
  
"Smack."  
  
He lets go.  
  
I back up and start to rub my wrist.  
  
"Ow." He says. He looks at me and rubs his cheek. "Well, if you're not here to do any harm then, " he shrugs his shoulders. "Later, Babe."  
  
He grabs his jacket, along with his sword and guns from the floor and starts to walk away.  
  
I stand in disbelief, "There were weapons on the floor and I didn't even see them?"  
  
My eyes follow him, "Hey, wait. Where are you going?" He stops in his tracks as if thinking about what I just said.  
  
I continue, "uh. Where am I? And where are my clothes?"  
  
He starts to walk away again.  
  
"Hey, I'm talking to you. Aren't you going to say anything? Are you just going to leave me here?" I stand there dumbfounded while he walks out the room not saying a word.  
  
Great. I'm totally lost and confused and I meet some guy who's a total asshole. What next?  
  
I look down and pull on my robe. I shake my head slowly, "I must look pretty silly."  
  
For humor's sake, I pinch my arm, "Ow. Okay, I'm awake."  
  
**********  
  
Dante walks out of the room, puts his jacket on and holsters his weapons. He continues to walk slowly while trying to listen to what I am saying. He chuckles.  
  
Dante stops and leans his back up against the wall. Without moving his head, he glances to the side.  
  
He starts to say to himself, "there's something weird about that woman." he pauses for a while, "I sensed her even though I didn't see her," he shakes his head as if to dismiss the thought, "nah, it must be something in the air."  
  
He pushes off the wall and continues to walk further from the room.  
  
**********  
  
What is this feeling? There's no one here, but I feel like someone's close by. I look around trying to discern where or if someone was standing around in the same room, "hmph. I'm just scared so my mind is working overtime." I shake my head quickly, "it's nothing."  
  
Walking towards the opening that man had disappeared into, I scan the room one last time. I see nothing useful so I continue to the door. I peek around the opening and examine the corridor. I can see the silhouette of a man in the distance.  
  
It must be that guy. The silhouette stops as if it knows someone's watching him. He turns his head to the side as if to look.  
  
My eyes widen. I duck back out of sight.  
  
Okay, that was weird. Did he sense me? No way. I sigh. 


	5. Chapter 5

Disclaimer: I know I haven't been adding a disclaimer to every chapter. I figured disclaiming at the beginning of the story was enough... But anyway... Y'all know I do not own Dante or any of the DMC characters. Nikki, Alma, Fulton, Psi, etc. are my fictional characters. Which by the way, Psi is pronounced 'sigh'. Just in case y'all didn't know...  
Chapter 5 -  
  
"But, Psi, why did we save her? She wasn't suppose to be there," Fulton says with a concerned look.  
  
"I had no choice. It was either bring attention from the human world or wait for another. I prefer not to wait for another," Psi says matter-of- factly.  
  
"But she had a friend with her. What's to become of that?"  
  
"But, but, but... You always seem to question everything I do. Can't you just trust me on this?" Psi retorts back a little irritated.  
  
"Her friend knows she's missing."  
  
"I know that. She'll return..."  
  
Fulton interrupts, "But her clothes. She doesn't have her clothes."  
  
Psi scratches his head pretending he doesn't know the answer just to tease Fulton, "Hmmm... Well, I guess I'll have to make sure when she returns she has her clothes back on."  
  
"And how do you propose to do that?"  
  
"What did I say? Just trust me, Fulton."  
  
"I do have one more question, Psi."  
  
"Yes."  
  
"What was that blood you placed in her?"  
  
"Demon's blood."  
  
"What? Why?"  
  
"I thought you were only going to ask one question?"  
  
"It warranted another question." Fulton says shuffling his feet.  
  
Psi looks at Fulton and smiles, "Demon's blood is powerful. That was the only way to bring her back to life. I'm no God you know."  
  
"I'm still confused." Fulton shuffles more.  
  
"About what? There's nothing complicated about it." Psi responds.  
  
"Why'd you bond her to Sparda's son?" Fulton asks confused.  
  
"I have my reasons. Don't worry about it. She's alive and going to be back in the human world. No one would suspect anything from someone like her."  
  
Still baffled, Fulton slowly replies with, "But she's part demon now. She'll never be the same," he pauses, "she should have just been the sacrifice, and we should have just killed the son of Sparda. We had him. We could have killed him."  
  
"Why are you so worried? You're not the one who has to explain himself to Mundus," he eyes Fulton and continues on, "I couldn't touch him anyway. He's protected. We were lucky to have caught him like we did. If he would have awakened while we were doing the ceremony, we would be dead."  
  
Fulton starts to look very nervous.  
  
"Don't worry, I've got it all under control." Psi adds in hoping to calm Fulton down.  
  
Fulton just nods his head in compliance. Fulton knows the only reason why Psi did what he did. Psi wanted to show Mundus that he could do just about anything, even bring a human back to life. Fulton just looks at Psi thinking, he'll pay for his conceit.  
  
**********  
  
I ease my way out of the room and start walking in the direction of the silhouette, which is now out of sight.  
  
I slowly walk along the corridor, my hand following the designs on the wall. I walk for a few minutes. A few feet ahead, I see double doors and hurry to them.  
  
I bite my bottom lip, place my hand on the knob and slowly turn. The door opens slightly. I peek through the crack and feel a slight breeze. The air smells of roses. I slowly push open the door.  
  
The room isn't very big and is lined with bookshelves. It looks like a library. The door slams shut behind me, "Gasp."  
  
I'm about to grab for the door when I realize the breeze rushing by my skin. I look ahead. Double glass doors are wide-open letting in a breeze. I walk over to the balcony and look down.  
  
There is a yard a couple of stories down. A stone wall surrounds the yard as if to keep strangers out. I look beneath the balcony, but don't see anything that is pertinent.  
  
Where are the roses? I can smell roses, but I don't see them. I look far off into the distance. I sense something and turn around. I walk back into the library.  
  
"Someone here?" I say. Though I think I said it only loud enough for me to hear.  
  
To the left of me are a couple of busts (no one who looks familiar) and a very large mirror. It is about 8 feet tall and about as wide as double doors. I approach it.  
  
I have an uneasy feeling. I don't like this, I think to myself.  
  
I touch the mirror with the tip of my finger. It ripples like water. I gasp and jerk my hand away.  
  
It's inviting me in. I can't resist...  
  
I place my hand through the mirror and watch it disappear. Finally, I enter and in a split second, I am standing in the lobby of the museum. I turn around, but there is nothing but a wall and a couple of goat statues staring me in the face.  
  
"Aah." I turn back around.  
  
"Alma!"  
  
I see Nikki walking hurriedly my way. I look down at my clothes. I'm back to normal.  
  
Nikki screams at me, "Alma, where have you been?! I've been looking all over for you!"  
  
"I've been here all the time." I say trying to sound convincing.  
  
"Yeah, right. Come on. Let's get out of here before you get lost again." She yanks at my arm and pulls me away.  
  
I laugh, "okay, okay..." But then I stop her and become serious, "Nikki, do you think I'm weird?"  
  
"Huh?" She blinks. "What are you talking about?" She says all confused.  
  
I repeat myself, "Do you think I'm weird?"  
  
"Why would you ask me a stupid question like that?"  
  
"Just answer me."  
  
She looks at me all dumbfounded and then pops me on the head, "You're always weird." She walks away.  
  
I smile and follow, but something still doesn't feel right. I stop and turn around, but see nothing.  
  
"Alma, come on... I think someone needs to take a nap?" Nikki says sarcastically.  
  
I roll my eyes.  
  
A few yards away a white haired man is watching us.  
  
**********  
  
Walking towards the bus station, I start a conversation.  
  
"So, how long was I lost?" I ask Nikki, a tone of sarcasm in my voice.  
  
"Long enough for me to worry," she says eyeing me kind of funny. "Especially since the area you supposedly entered disappeared. I had to talk to one of the natives, luckily she knew English, and she looked at me like I was crazy."  
  
"What area? I don't remember entering any area."  
  
"Quit patronizing me. You know exactly what area I'm talking about. You picked it."  
  
I give her this I-don't-know look and shrug my shoulders, "I'm okay, aren't I? Why are you so mad at me?" I pause, "Wait. Is someone following us?"  
  
"Huh?" Nikki looks behind us, "I don't see anyone." She looks at me and punches my arm.  
  
"Ow. What was that for?"  
  
Nikki pokes at my arm with her finger, "Quit trying to change the subject."  
  
I just look at her. An eyebrow lifts, "Are you sure no one's following us?"  
  
"Okay, Alma, I don't know what you're on, but you need to quit," she says rolling her eyes, "I know we're in a foreign country and stuff, but your paranoia is getting ridiculous."  
  
My eyes narrow, "I'm not paranoid." I say a little irritated.  
  
She looks at me annoyed.  
  
"Whatever." I say walking away.  
  
**********  
  
The white haired man sees us walking towards the bus station. He follows trying not to be detected.  
  
By this time, I'm standing outside the bus station and Nikki's inside looking at the tour schedules. I exhale, a little frustrated.  
  
What is this feeling? I still feel like someone's watching me. I look around the station trying to find any suspicious looking people, and I catch a glimpse of the white haired man. I freeze, "Oh, my, God." I strain to look, but he's no longer there.  
  
That isn't who I think it is, is it? No, it can't be. I shake my head. I must be seeing things, I think to myself.  
  
All of a sudden, I feel a hand on my shoulder. I jump.  
  
"Gee, a little jumpy aren't we?" Nikki says eyeing me suspiciously.  
  
"Heh, just a little confusing here that's all..." I say jokingly.  
  
"Anyway, there's a little café a couple of blocks from here. We can take a little rest and drink some coffee before the next tour. Not that you need any caffeine." Nikki says, shoving me in the direction of the café.  
  
We sit down at the coffee shop and Nikki starts chatting about going to some castle up on a hill. My mind starts to wander and her voice starts to fade. With my elbows on the table, I rest my head in the palms of my hands and look into space.  
  
As if on cue, someone walks up to the table and places their hand on my shoulder.  
  
"Hey, why are you being such a stranger?" A man's voice pipes up.  
  
I see Nikki's eyes move over in my direction and she smiles.  
  
I quickly turn my head. My eyes widen, "You?"  
  
He sits down in the vacant chair as if invited, looks at me and smiles.  
  
"What..." Nikki puts her hand on mine and interrupts me.  
  
"Who's your friend, Alma? Are you trying to hide him from me?" Nikki says completely ignoring me.  
  
"..." I stare at him then look at Nikki, "It's..." I'm interrupted again.  
  
"Yeah, Alma, you told me you were going to be back. What happened to you?" The white haired man says while looking at Nikki, "Hi, I'm Dante."  
  
I stare in awe.  
  
"Heeey! Who the hell do you think you are?" I say looking at Dante.  
  
Nikki smacks my arm, "Alma! That's rude."  
  
Nikki turns to look at Dante and starts talking to him.  
  
"But... I don't even know him!" I yell.  
  
They both look at me and so does everyone else at the coffee shop. I sit back embarrassed.  
  
What's he doing here? Why is he here? Did I dream that incident? The castle? Him? I'm so confused!  
  
I sit forward and try to interrupt, "Ummm... excuse me, Dante? Can I talk to you for a sec? Alone."  
  
Nikki pauses to look at me then interrupts again, "Hey, Dante, do you want to come with us to the castle tour?"  
  
I roll my eyes and sigh. I can't even get a word in this.  
  
"Wouldn't that be cool?" Nikki says to me all excited.  
  
I answer back, "He hasn't even said yes or no and you're all ready..."  
  
"Sure," Dante says looking at me then smiles at Nikki.  
  
I sit there quietly and blink a few times. Great, I say to myself sarcastically.  
  
Nikki looks at me as if trying to get permission for our "new" friend to join.  
  
I start biting the inside of my mouth and shake my head slowly, "I guess...(rolling eyes)... That's fine."  
  
What am I doing? I'm letting a complete stranger hang out with us. Not only is he a complete stranger, but he's also someone that makes my skin crawl. I must be insane.  
  
They continue talking. Once in awhile I see Dante look in my direction as if trying to keep an eye on me, but my mind is working at a hundred miles an hour that I think nothing of it. 


	6. Chapter 6

Disclaimer: I know I haven't been adding a disclaimer to every chapter. I figured disclaiming at the beginning of the story was enough... But anyway... Y'all know I do not own Dante or any of the DMC characters. Nikki, Alma, Fulton, Psi, etc. are my fictional characters. Which by the way, Psi is pronounced 'sigh'. Just in case y'all didn't know... (  
  
Thanks for all the reviews (so far). I hope you guys enjoy the story so far also. I have been rereading and doing major editing to my fanfic, so some of the previous chapters may change a little.  
  
Enjoy! Don't forget to review. Thanks!  
  
Chapter 6  
  
I'm sitting by myself in the bus on the way to the castle, the roar of the bus' engine humming in my mind. I look over to my left and see the white haired man in a black shirt and blue jeans talking to Nikki.  
  
I don't know how else to describe him. He's about 6'2" and he looks like he works out. Very well toned body. He has almost shoulder length silvery white hair. His bangs are long and it's layered in the back, which covers most of the back of his neck. The sides are just long enough to cover parts of his ears. I can tell his hair is very light and soft, because even with a slight breeze his hair stirs with the same movement. He's quite handsome. And those eyes, he has the most lightest blue eyes. . .  
  
I blink. What am I thinking? I shake my head trying to remove the thoughts running through my mind. I look back over to Dante and Nikki.  
  
As if he knew I was looking at him, he turns his head and smiles. My eyebrow lifts and I turn my head the other way, looking back out the window. He comes over and sits in the seat next to me.  
  
"Hey," he says, "Can I talk to you?"  
  
I continuously look out the window.  
  
He leans over and whispers in my ear, "Does your friend know?"  
  
What is he talking about? I ignore him.  
  
"You can't ignore me for very long," he whispers again. He gets up and sits back next to Nikki.  
  
He starts talking to Nikki and says something loud enough for me to hear, "I like your friend, but she told me that she has a boyfriend. Is that true?"  
  
Nikki laughs, "Who? Alma? She doesn't have a boyfriend. She's picky. She only likes certain guys." She looks over to my side of the bus, "Well, at least, she didn't say that she doesn't like you."  
  
I look over at Nikki, "Don't put words in my mouth!" My eyes narrow before looking back out the window again.  
  
"I guess we pissed her off or something?" Dante says with an arched brow.  
  
"Nah, she's just grouchy because she doesn't have a boyfriend." Nikki says loud enough for me to hear.  
  
I ignore her.  
  
**********  
  
The bus stops in front of a very huge and beautiful castle. It's far off in the distance, but because of its massive size it seems closer than what it actually is.  
  
Dante and Nikki get up and start to exit the bus. After I knew they were off, I get up from my seat. As soon as I start descending down the steps of the bus, I can smell a slight aroma of roses. I stop at the bottom step of the bus.  
  
"Excuse me." One of the passengers says to me, pushing me out of the way.  
  
I look at the person, "Oh, excuse me." I mumble snottily.  
  
I walk over to Nikki and ask, "Do you smell roses?"  
  
"Wow, now that's a big castle," she comments. She looks at me, "What did you say?"  
  
I eye her, "Do you smell roses?"  
  
"No. I smell freshly cut grass." Nikki looks at me strangely. "Maybe you smell someone's cologne."  
  
I scratch my head, "Uh, maybe."  
  
Dante brushes up against me and I feel my skin tingle as if I had been electrocuted. I glance at him and move away. He looks at me and smiles. Or was it a smirk? Why does he keep smiling at me like that?  
  
I turn my head, "Humph."  
  
Nikki starts to follow the rest of the tourists, "Come on, Guys!" She motions for us to follow.  
  
I completely ignore Dante. I'm about to catch up to Nikki until Dante grabs my hand. Something flashes in my head and I stop dead in my tracks. I follow the arm up and see him staring me in the face. I jerk my hand away.  
  
"What's your problem?!" I yell.  
  
"What's yours?" He says coolly.  
  
"Ah!" I say stammering away.  
  
He grabs my arm and turns me back around. "Are you hiding something? There's definitely something different about you, but you're not going to tell me, are you?"  
  
"What are you talking about? You're the one who wouldn't answer me when I was talking to you earlier. There's something weird about you, and I'm going to find out before you do something to me or my friend, Nikki." I jerk my arm from his grip.  
  
He threatens, "If you don't want your friend to get hurt, I suggest you lose her somewhere. She's definitely human, but you." he pauses, "You're not."  
  
I stare at him. What? What the hell is he talking about?  
  
He continues, "I don't know what happened in that place we were at, but I'm going to find out. Even if it means I have to kill you."  
  
He walks past me. His demeanor changes quickly, "Hey, Nikki, wait up. I don't think Alma feels very good!"  
  
I just stand there thinking, what the hell is going on? And what the hell did he mean by that? Thinking that he wants to kill me, I put my hand over my mouth in shock.  
  
"What? No way." Nikki says sounding disappointed. "Is she sick?"  
  
"I think so." Dante replies.  
  
They're now standing next to each other talking. I can only make out a few words here and there, "... are you sure?"  
  
"No problem, you go have fun. We'll be..."  
  
"Okay... take... her."  
  
I start to mumble, "What?... take her?... Nikki, no, wait."  
  
I see Dante walking my way.  
  
I've got to get out of here. Nikki and I have got to get out of here. I scan the area looking for a way to make a quick getaway. I glance back to see how far Dante is. I don't see him. I turn around to try and hide somewhere and bump into him.  
  
I hear the familiar voice, "Going somewhere?"  
  
I look up at him. Panic's written all over my face.  
  
He puts his arms around me and pulls me close to him as if he is comforting me, but the tone in his voice tells me otherwise, "You don't want to make a scene here. We need to go someplace and talk, because you're going to tell me everything you know or else."  
  
All I can do is stand there and nod a few times. Nikki sees this and thinks everything's okay and starts for the castle with the rest of the crowd. Dante and I don't budge until everyone is out of sight. When the coast is clear, I shove Dante from me, and he slams against the bus.  
  
Did I do that? I shake my head thinking I should move my ass out of there, I run opposite the castle, away from the crowd and away from Nikki.  
  
I can hear footsteps behind me. It's getting closer. I turn my head to look and Dante's right on my heels. I pick up the pace.  
  
"Get back here. Running's not going to help you." I hear him say.  
  
Not sure of the direction I'm heading, I make a beeline for the trees on the other side of the road. My heart's beating at an accelerated rate, and I feel like I'm going to pass out from lack of air. I take a quick look back. I can't see him, but I hear him.  
  
Breathing heavily, I zig zag through the trees, running downhill. I run a few more feet, look back and don't see or hear anyone. I slow down. I stop to catch my breath and bend over to place my hands on my knees, "(Panting)... Where'd he go?" I look back up towards where I entered from the road.  
  
I hear a rustling of leaves behind me, "You looking for me?"  
  
I quickly turn around. But before I can react, he kicks me in the stomach. I go flying back a few feet and slide on my butt a couple of yards before I stop.  
  
I cringe from the swift kick in my gut. I hear him walk towards me. I put my arms in front of me to shield myself from another attack.  
  
"Are you going to run again? Or you going to stay put so we can talk?" Dante says after stopping at my feet. He is also holding his stomach.  
  
I move my arms away from my face and without looking at him, I say, "What do you want to talk about?"  
  
Dante crouches down and stares at me intently. After a long pause, he says, "You know, you aren't very smart."  
  
I look at him, "What do you mean?"  
  
"For being part demon, you should be able to sense my whereabouts." He states.  
  
I look at him confused, "I'm not part demon," I stick my tongue out at him and say immaturely, "How do you know I'm not an angel?"  
  
He looks at me like a curious little child. One arm drapes over one knee, while the other elbow is propped up on the other knee. His chin is resting in the palm of his hand. He reaches with his free hand and touches my leg. In a split second, I feel a tingle and something flashes before my eyes. Reacting, I kick at his hand.  
  
"Ow! What the hell was that for?" He says rubbing his hand.  
  
I try to scramble to me feet, "What did you just do?" I look at him a little shocked. "Don't do that again." I demanded.  
  
He stands up. I back up, a little startled.  
  
Dante puts his hand up, "Easy. If you don't run, you won't have to worry about anything."  
  
I stutter, "W... What do you want?"  
  
He eyes me, cocks his head and asks, "Who are you?"  
  
I look at him confused.  
  
He moves his head slightly towards me as if waiting for an answer, "Well?"  
  
"What do you mean? You all ready know who I am." I say.  
  
"I know that much," he says matter-of-factly. "Okay, let me ask another question. 'What' are you?"  
  
"Huh?"  
  
He taps his foot, "You know, this would go a lot easier if you'd just answer my questions."  
  
"Sorry," I say looking away.  
  
I sit back down drawing my knees to my chest. I hug them tightly.  
  
"Sigh... Who do you work for?"  
  
"..." I don't know what to say to him. What does he mean by that? I don't work for anyone. Does he think I'm related with the Mafia or Yakuza?  
  
"Are you just going to sit there and not answer me?" He asks. I can tell that he's starting to get a little impatient.  
  
I don't know what to do. What do I tell him? Why is he bothering me? He didn't seem to care when I was asking for his help in that castle.  
  
All of a sudden, I hear him move my way. He grabs the front of my shirt and lifts me up, "Anybody in there?"  
  
"Let me go! You're hurting me!" I yell while trying to pry his hand from my shirt.  
  
He throws me back and I land on my ass. I wince thinking I'd feel pain.  
  
I slowly get up and out of reaction; I rub my butt, "What was that for?"  
  
He starts to walk slowly towards me. I back up to match his steps.  
  
"Where are you going?" Dante says a little suspicious.  
  
"Uhh... Somewhere where you can't bother me," I say as I make a dash for the road. I can hear him behind me. All of a sudden, I hear a gunshot the same time something nicks my ear.  
  
I put my hand over my ear and turn around to see Dante pointing a gun at me. Did he just shoot at me?! Where'd he get the gun? I pull my hand away from my ear and see a few specks of blood.  
  
Dante slowly walks my way and starts to speak, "I missed on purpose. If you don't want to die, I suggest you don't run again."  
  
I put my hand to my ear again, "I can't believe you shot at me!"  
  
He continues to walk with the gun still pointed in my direction.  
  
"Who the hell do you think you are?! What the hell do you want from me?! If you're going to kill me, just do it, and quit teasing me!!!" I am yelling so hard that I can feel veins popping out of my neck.  
  
Dante stops a few feet from me. "Come here." He motions with his gun.  
  
I shake my head no.  
  
His eyes narrow and he points his gun as if to fire.  
  
I close my eyes tightly. I can feel my chest rising and falling from my breathing then I hear leaves rustling behind me. I open my eyes. He's not in front of me anymore.  
  
"Click." An arm goes around my neck. I feel something metal pointed at the side of my head.  
  
Dante whispers into my ear, "We're going to go further into the woods, and you're not going to run." He starts to guide me in the direction I'm facing.  
  
I can hear his breathing because he is so close to me. I wish he wouldn't touch me. When he touches me, my skin crawls. I don't know if that's the best description, but it's the only one I can think of right now.  
  
We're further away from the road. I can only hear the sound of the leaves rustling in the wind and his breathing. I wish he'd quit touching me.  
  
Then a thought comes to my head. Is he going to rape me? Oh, my, God, he's some kind of pervert.  
  
I start to struggle. There's no way in hell this guy is going to rape me and leave me for dead and then go after Nikki. I'll be damned if he hurts Nikki. That Bastard.  
  
I try my hardest to break from his chokehold, but he seems to match my every move.  
  
"Why are you trying to get away? Don't you know it's in your best interest to cooperate?"  
  
"No, no, no. You're not going to hurt Nikki!" I say while trying to break free. "I will not let you hurt her! Do you hear me?! You can do what you want with me, but I'll kill you before you get to her!"  
  
I hear Dante scoff at my accusations. "What are you talking about, Bitch? I wouldn't touch her. It's you I'm more interested in."  
  
I keep struggling, "What?!... (pant)... You... (pant)... Bas...tard." I say under my breath.  
  
"Okay, I've had enough of this," and with that, he hits me on the back of the neck with his gun.  
  
**********  
  
"Where the hell are those two?" Nikki says while exiting the bus. They've been gone for a while.  
  
The bus driver looks at Nikki from his seat, "Hey, Lady. We need to go, okay." He says with his weird accent.  
  
Nikki waves her hand as if to dismiss his gripe, "Yeah, yeah... Just a second. We can't just leave my friends here."  
  
"Maybe they go already." The bus driver says rolling his eyes. "Damn American," he says under his breath.  
  
Getting back in the bus, Nikki eyes the bus driver, "What did you say?"  
  
He ignores the question. "Maybe you find them at hotel. You say friend sick, right?"  
  
Nikki rolls her eyes at the driver, but she nods in acknowledgement. She sits back in her seat and thinks to herself how much she's going to cuss me out for leaving.  
  
**********  
  
"Uhhh... (groggily)... ugh, my head." I say finally waking up from my fate with the butt of Dante's gun. I open my eyes slowly trying to focus on my surroundings. "Uhhh... where am I?"  
  
I try to lift my head to look around, but the pain in the back of my neck keeps me from rising too high. With what I am able to see, I can tell that I'm not outside anymore. The room looks like a log cabin of some sort. There is a small rug in the middle of the room, and it feels like the bed I'm lying on is made of logs. I can smell burning wood.  
  
Groggily, I try to sit up. "Uuhh... Why'd he have to do that?" I say rubbing the back of my neck. Then realization hits me and I feel for my clothes. They are still on, "Whew." I chuckle half-heartedly.  
  
I hear the door open up to the room I'm in, "You finally up?" I hear that all too familiar voice.  
  
I look up from my clothes.  
  
"Don't worry. I didn't touch you." Dante says as he begins to walk over to the bed.  
  
"Don't get any closer!" I say angrily.  
  
Dante stops. "Why are you being so stubborn?"  
  
I don't know what to say. I just stare at him.  
  
"I don't know why you won't talk to me, but you're going to have to say something sometime or another. I'm getting a little annoyed with your silence. Plus, you're giving me a headache." He says.  
  
I take a deep breath.  
  
"Okay, don't say anything. Let's get one thing straight, I'm not going to hurt you... unless, you do something stupid. Do you understand?"  
  
I hesitate to answer.  
  
Dante repeats himself. His tone is a little louder. "Do you understand?"  
  
I nod a couple of times very slowly.  
  
"Good. Now, I'm sure you're probably hungry so when you feel up to it, you can join me in the other room." After saying that he walks out leaving me alone.  
  
Well, I can't do anything except comply. He'd probably kill me in an instant if he wanted to. Why is he so interested in me? What does he want? "Sigh. Oh, well, I better go see what's up." I get up from the bed and walk out of the room.  
  
He's sitting at a table drinking something from a mug. He sees me and removes the cup from his lips, "Well, it's nice of you to join me. Are you going to be civil now?"  
  
I smile, but upon feeling the dull ache at the back of my neck, I quickly frown, "Why'd you hit me? That hurt, you know."  
  
He ignores the question. Dante takes another sip from his mug and pulls out a chair motioning for me to sit in.  
  
I swallow hard. Why so close?  
  
"I don't bite." He says patting the seat.  
  
"Yeah, right, tell that to the back of my head." I say scornfully.  
  
I walk over slowly and sit down. I scoot the chair a couple of inches away. Dante laughs.  
  
"Do you want something to eat?"  
  
I shake my head.  
  
"You thirsty?"  
  
I shake my head again. I'm watching him intently as he's asking this without even looking up from his mug. Must be something really good for him to be so interested in it.  
  
I laugh a little.  
  
He stops sipping from his cup and looks at me from the corner of his eyes.  
  
I stop breathing for a couple of seconds.  
  
"What." He says.  
  
I shake my head, "Nothing."  
  
There is silence for what seems like forever.  
  
"So, are you going to start talking, or do I have to start every conversation?" He says looking down at his mug on the table.  
  
Confused, I ask, "What do you want to hear?"  
  
"Like what was I doing chained up on that stone slab? And who you are?  
  
My brow wrinkles, "I don't know. I woke up on one of those stone slabs too..." Mumbling, I say, "...naked."  
  
One of Dante's eyebrow lifts up and he looks at me.  
  
Did he hear me? I look up at the ceiling and start to bite my nails. Okay, this is uncomfortable.  
  
Dante slams his fist on the table and startles me, "Don't you have anything else to say?!"  
  
I jump in my seat, "Geez."  
  
He gets up from his seat and places his arms on either side of me grabbing the top corners of the back of my chair. He starts to speak as though he is interrogating a prisoner. "Well, obviously you changed clothes between the first time I met you and the second time. Either you start telling the truth, or I turn to more tactics to get you to spill your guts out." His eyes narrow, and he says with a threatening tone, "if you know what I mean."  
  
I hesitate to answer. "Uh... What do you want me to say? I really don't know much. I only know as much as you do. I remember going to the museum and looking at some gothic stuff, and then." I pause for a second remembering the black cats that attacked me. I gasp and put my hand to my mouth, "the red eyes," I say, staring into Dante's shirt.  
  
"What red eyes?" Dante shakes the chair.  
  
I look back into Dante's face, "The big black cats. the ones with the red eyes."  
  
Dante gives me a look, "Shadows?"  
  
I look at him confused, "No. Big cats with red eyes... And spikes."  
  
Dante states it this time, "Shadows."  
  
I gaze into his eyes. I can tell that he is contemplating something. I try to analyze his expressions, but he's not showing any emotion. I blink, turn my head and end up staring at his arm.  
  
Something is making my skin tingle. I shudder as I realize how close he is to me. I dare not move so I close my eyes to try and stabilize my thoughts. He's not even touching me, but my senses are tingling. Is he making me feel this way? Argh! This urge I feel. It's driving me nuts. He's too close. Before I knew it, I start to yell, "Get away from me!!!" I open my eyes.  
  
I must have broken his meditation, because Dante is now staring at me, his eyes narrow.  
  
I clench my fists and look away. Oops, I think I said something wrong. Dante lets go of my chair and stands up straight. He looks at me like I'm crazy. He starts to pace the room.  
  
I look around the place trying to calm myself down. I notice a couch, a coffee table and some end tables. The fireplace is crackling away, and the place is fairly lit even though there aren't very many windows. I think to myself, what a nice cozy place. My concentration is broke by the sound of Dante's boots hitting the wooden floors. I stare back at him.  
  
Dante stands there contemplating, hand on chin, "Hmmm... come to think of it. I remember seeing some shadows at the old castle, but they were killed by." his face lights up, "... by these two guys in robes." His face frowns, "There was a body on the floor and then they pointed to me. He turns to face me, "And it was you."  
  
"Me??" I say confused.  
  
"You were the body on the floor. Those shadows had killed you... I think. At least, that's what one of the men said." He pauses trying to remember, "One of them was worried."  
  
"Sorry, I don't remember any of that." I say sounding a little cynical.  
  
Dante still paces the floor. I can tell he was trying to put the pieces of the puzzle together.  
  
I start to think to myself. I was dead. Two guys in robes wanted to get rid of my body. Dante was there. Thinking to myself that that has no relevance to anything. Dante was next to me chained to an altar for some reason. I woke up naked on an altar not remembering anything. I gasp. Did those guys in the robes do a ritual and bring me back to life? But I don't remember dying. I remember the black cats with spikes that protruded from their bodies at will. At will... Those last two words resonate in my head. My head starts to hurt. I grab at the bridge of my nose. The pain. The pain. The paaiiinnn.  
  
"I did die!" I say, remembering the spike in my chest. The pain. How could I forget the pain and the blood? There was so much blood. I remember. "I remember!" I yell. I look at my hands thinking I would see the blood again.  
  
"Alma. Alma?" I hear Dante's voice in the background.  
  
Coming back to reality, I look towards Dante. He's looking at me like he just witnessed a mental patient having one of those moments.  
  
"You okay?" He asks.  
  
"I remember, Dante. I remember."  
  
"Remember what?"  
  
"That I did die." I pause, but continue again, "I guess they brought me back to life." I shake my head not believing what I just said. I look at Dante again and say, "That's ridiculous. Was I really dead? No one can be brought back to life. Can they?"  
  
"Uh, that's a good question. One thing's for sure, you're definitely not human. At least, not all human."  
  
"What? Not all human? What do you mean by that?" My brow wrinkles, "You keep telling me that, but you don't ever explain."  
  
Dante rolls his eyes, "You're like me. Half demon, half human."  
  
I recoil in disbelief, "Half what?!" I put my head in my hand. "Mmmm. You're talking nonsense."  
  
Dante walks up to me, grabs my arms and stands me up. "You feel that? You don't get that feeling unless you're a demon. You can also sense me close by. I sense you close by. Humans can't feel that. That's why devils and demons can roam around without humans knowing, but you and I know when they're around."  
  
I try to speak, but my mouth doesn't form the words. Finally, "What?! What are you saying? Devils and demons? What demons? You're talking nonsense. Me a demon?" I look over to the table and see his mug, "What the hell were you drinking?"  
  
Dante follows my gaze and realizes what I was talking about, "Coffee, Silly!" He lets go of me.  
  
"I need to go." I say.  
  
"Go where?"  
  
"I need to get back to Nikki."  
  
"And put her in danger?" Dante replies angrily.  
  
"Well, she's going to wonder where I'm at."  
  
"You'll put her life in danger. She can't sense denizens of the Underworld. Only you can. They'll sense you and go after you... and her."  
  
My eyebrow lifts and I repeat in my mind what I heard Dante say. Underworld??? I won't even ask what that's all about. I shake the word from my head.  
  
"You found out what you needed to know about me." I say.  
  
"Yeah, but it still leaves a bunch of questions unanswered. Like why was I with you when you were brought back to life? Why were you brought back to life? And who the hell were those robed guys?"  
  
"I don't know, and I don't care. All I know is I'm alive and that I need to get away from you!" I say, poking at his chest.  
  
"Away from me? Why?" Dante asks confused.  
  
I stand there feeling like I'm about to have a tantrum. "Because!"  
  
He realizes why I'm uncomfortable around him and starts to taunt me. "Because why?" He says mischievously.  
  
"Because my senses are tingling and it's driving me crazy!" I yell walking towards the door. I try to open the door, but Dante slams it shut keeping his hand on the door next to my head.  
  
I turn around to face him, "Hey! What did you do that for? Can't you see I'm trying to leave? You all ready got most of the answers you needed. I don't know the answers to the other ones." I say trying to sound calm.  
  
His face is only a few inches from mine. He looks into my eyes. "Do I make you nervous?" He says his eyes narrow.  
  
"W, well. No." I say feeling a little awkward. God, he's too close. I feel like passing out. This sensation is too overwhelming. What's he doing? The silence is too much for me and I stutter, "Wh, what?"  
  
He smirks and nonchalantly says, "Kiss me."  
  
My eyes widen. I think I swallowed my tongue. I get all huffy. "What?!?!" I push him from me and turn around to face the door. I pause for a sec before opening the door. Don't know why, maybe just wondering what the hell he meant by that. It didn't make sense or maybe I was just trying to convince myself that it meant nothing. I storm out the door. I can hear him laughing behind me.  
  
"Hey, do you know where you're going?" I hear him yell.  
  
I stop in my tracks still feeling a little embarrassed. I stand there with my hands on my hips not turning around. "NO!"  
  
"Oh, well." I hear the door shut.  
  
"Arrgh! You asshole!" I say turning around.  
  
He's standing there with his arms folded.  
  
Oops.  
  
"That's a nice thing to say."  
  
I look to the side, "Just point me in the direction and I'll find my own way out. I told you that I wanted to get away from you anyway." I say looking back in his direction.  
  
He rolls his eyes and points to the left.  
  
"Thank you." I start to walk away.  
  
I hear him yell at me, "Don't wander off too far, Baby!" 


	7. Chapter 7

Disclaimer time again: All characters from DMC is a Capcom thing. Everyone else belongs to me :)  
  
Thanks for the reviews everyone!  
  
Vergil Sparda - I don't know if your comment was a positive or negative one, but I'm going to assume it was sarcasm. I think it's too early in the morning for interpretation. heheh :)  
  
Fangirl - Thanks! I wasn't sure about the half devil half demon thing. All I know is he can "devil trigger" so I ran with that. :) I decided to change it to half demon, because that's what the game says. :)  
  
Now on with the story..  
  
Chapter 7 -  
  
It is now pretty late and I can see the sun setting in the horizon.  
  
"Finally!" I say out loud reaching the edge of the forest. I thought I was going to have to go back and kick his ass for pointing me in the wrong direction.  
  
I bet Nikki's pretty worried right now. What do I tell her? Do I tell her that Dante was just a loser and leave it at that? No, because if we bump into him again, she'd kick his ass. I guess I'll just have to endure her wrath.  
  
**********  
  
Getting off the bus, I look up at the hotel, "I hope she's there."  
  
I'm about to walk past the check-in counter when, "Excuse me, Ms. Lyn?"  
  
I turn to look at the clerk, "Yes."  
  
"Your friend, Nikki, left a message. She said that she would be at Roxy's, if you'd care to join her."  
  
"Thank you." I say to the clerk.  
  
I knew that she would be mad at me. "If I care to join her." I say mocking her voice. That sounds like her all right. I Sigh. Well, I better go change first. I know I must be pretty dirty after that scuffle with Dante. I roll my eyes.  
  
After a quick shower and a fresh change of clothes, I head back down to the lobby. I ask the clerk for the directions to Roxy's. Luckily, it's only a walks length away. I don't want any more bus rides.  
  
I'm about to exit the hotel and my senses start to tingle. Not the tingle I get when I'm around Dante. This tingle reeks of... evil. I shudder.  
  
Not knowing which direction it's coming from; I continue out the door and try to ignore it. Maybe if I act normal, it won't know. If I look suspicious then I give myself away, right? I make an attempt to chuckle, "Heh," and end up shaking my head.  
  
Since I'm not paying any attention to my surroundings, I accidentally bump into someone. "Uh, excuse..." I stop dead in my tracks. That didn't feel right. I turn my head to look. The man just keeps walking.  
  
"Huh, oh well." I say walking away. The sensation starts to fade.  
  
I'm looking at all the buildings while heading down to Roxy's. It looks like downtown Vegas to me, in a country kind of way, I think to myself laughing a little. I get to the front of Roxy's and notice all the scantily clad women giggling and laughing. Most of them have men in their arms. I smirk.  
  
"I can't believe she's in here." I say entering the club. I follow the rest of the crowd.  
  
The music is loud and the lights are dancing to the beat. I try to scan the area for Nikki. It shouldn't be hard to spot her in a place like this.  
  
In the midst of all this hubbub, someone manages to grab my wrist. I turn to look. It's some middle-aged man trying to score. He's about five foot ten inches tall and has a bald spot in the middle of his head. His hair looks as though he dyes it to match his mustache. I jerk my arm from him, but he's got one hell of a grip on it. My eyes narrow and I jerk even harder. He goes flying into the crowd behind me. I turn around and look. Most of the people are having too much fun to even notice, and the ones that did are laughing. He gets up and dusts his pants off. I did that?  
  
Someone hits me on the back of the head, "Smack."  
  
"Ow."  
  
"There you are! You seem to be famous for leaving me alone!" I turn around and see Nikki all red faced.  
  
I think to myself, great, here it comes.  
  
"Where'd you go?! I was so worried! I thought you were kidnapped or something worse!" She pauses for a bit. Probably trying to see if I'd have some kind of excuse. "But I figured that since you were with Dante, you were probably safe! Where did you and Dante go, huh?!" She looks around, "Speaking of which, where is he?"  
  
Not telling the truth, I yell over the music, "I'm sorry! I didn't feel good, so we sat in the park. I fell asleep, and Dante didn't bother to wake me! I didn't mean to worry you! You told him to take me anyway!"  
  
She just stands there with her hands on her hips. Her face has an uh-huh look on it. "I told him to take care of you!" She says correcting me.  
  
I yell again ignoring her comment. "You obviously weren't too worried! You came out to party!" I smile and wink.  
  
She smacks me in the arm really hard. It didn't hurt for some reason. I rub it out of reaction.  
  
Nikki grabs my arm and pulls me down so she could yell in my ear, "Where's Dante?!"  
  
I shrug my shoulders and say, "He said that he had to go somewhere and left! He said we'd see him again!"  
  
She looks at me in awe, "How?! Does he know where we're staying?!"  
  
I pat her on her shoulder, "Don't worry about it! He said he'd see us again!" I say, kind of making it up.  
  
She shrugs her shoulders. "Okay! Come on, I want you to meet some guys I just met tonight!" She says while pulling on my sleeve.  
  
"That's fast... Hey, hey, watch the shirt. I just put this on!" I yell trying to follow her. I am about to take a couple more steps when suddenly my body starts to tingle. This uneasy feeling freezes me where I stand and I scan the area, "Oh, no, not again." I say under my breath.  
  
What is this? Am I going to feel this every time some 'demon' wants to show his face? Maybe it's just a reaction thing to being brought back to life. What am I saying?! I shake my head thinking I'm going crazy for believing Dante. "What if he is right?" I mumble. The sensation seems to intensify. I slowly scan the area again trying not to make it obvious.  
  
"ALMA! ALMAAA!!!" I look over towards Nikki. She's flagging me down.  
  
I smile and wave in recognition. Gritting my teeth, I say, probably more to myself than to Nikki, "Not now, Nikki. Not now."  
  
Slowly I ease my way towards Nikki. The club is full of people. Everyone's drinking, smoking, smiling, laughing, dancing, talking, and. necking. My lip curls in disgust. Am I really disgusted or jealous. What am I thinking? I dismiss the thought from my mind. I am about to look away when the couple necking catches my attention again. The woman seems kind of relaxed. I stare a little longer. Her hands are at her sides and she jerks as though she's getting chills. The man has his hands wrapped around her so tightly that I thought her head would pop off. I can hardly see him, but he's definitely got his face buried in her neck.  
  
My eyebrow lifts, "Boy, they're really getting into it." I say to myself.  
  
The man loosens his grip slightly. He moves his head just enough so that I can see his face. Wow, he's handsome. He looks my way and smiles, an evil smile. My eyes widen. His eyes, they are so dark. He lets go of the woman and she slumps a little. She's drunk, I think to myself. He starts to come my way. I try to lose his gaze and in panic, I head in the direction of Nikki.  
  
"Damn. 'scuse me, 'scuse me." I say pushing my way through.  
  
This feeling, it's still here, and it's getting stronger. What do I do? I won't be able to defend myself if something happens.  
  
While pushing my way through the crowd, I turn my head to look back and see if that guy was still following me. Damn, too many people. I can't tell.  
  
My senses are tingling so much that it's almost to the point of being itchy. Still trying to push my way through, I turn to look for Nikki, and the guy's standing right in front of me. My hands touch him.  
  
My senses go into overload. I back away in shock. He grabs me by the arm and pushes me towards the back of the club. I look over to Nikki. She thinks I'm hitting on some guy and gives me the thumbs up. My mouth drops.  
  
This guy's strong. Where's he taking me? "Heeey!" I yell. I try to pull away from his grip, but I can't seem to get rid of him. "Let go, you jerk!" He keeps shoving me towards the back. He has such a strong grip on my arm that I think he's cutting the circulation to it. "Ugh, where are you taking me?!" We finally get to the hall where the bathrooms are. He shoves me hard against the wall and pins me there.  
  
"Ow. What the...?!" My senses are going crazy. I just want to scrape him off me and... kill him.  
  
He places his forearm against my neck and looks at me with those cold and dark eyes, "Did you see something you like?" He says sneering, a slight metallic aroma emanates from his mouth. He licks his lips. Did I see blood?  
  
"(Gasping for air)... uh..." I don't say anything. I'm just struggling from his hold and getting quite angry.  
  
He caresses my face and licks the side of it.  
  
"Yuck!" Repulsed, I knee him between the legs and at the same time grab his forearm to move him away from me, but I practically throw him out the back door of the club. The door swings open from the force of his weight. I run after him.  
  
He's lying in the back alley writhing in pain from the apparent knee-in-the- groin. He starts to get up, but I don't give him the chance to recover. I give him a swift kick to the ribs. He goes flying a couple of feet, "Ooof!"  
  
Wow, did I do that? I smile inside.  
  
"That was gross. You know, you shouldn't lick someone's face, unless you know them well..." I put my finger to my cheek, as if thinking, "you know, actually, that's still gross."  
  
I hear him mumble between gritted teeth, "Fucking bitch."  
  
As if by instinct, I make a dash for him with fists ready to punch at anything that was exposed.  
  
"Rrrrr..." He gets up and is coming straight for me. He transforms and shows his true identity.  
  
He looks like a character right out of some science fiction creep show. The part of the eyes that is supposed to be white is yellow and the dark of his eyes are outlined in red. His skin is rough with many craters and points that are randomly placed all over his body. He no longer has any hair either. And boy, does he stink.  
  
After that quick interlude, I try to get into a fighting stance. Remembering that I once took martial arts as a kid. Of course, I was only a green belt. And upon remembering that my brow wrinkles knowing I could possibly die.  
  
He tries to grab for me and I avert his attempt. He snarls, or was that an expression of amusement? My eyes narrow.  
  
He slouches and tries to swipe at me with his nasty hands.  
  
I comment. "You know, they have medicine for fungus infected nails." I pause for a moment and mumble, "But I don't know about your face."  
  
I think I angered the thing. The darks of his eyes become very small and he makes a guttural sound that seems to come from inside his stomach.  
  
"Heh..." I taunt him by motioning my hands for him to come on.  
  
He lunges at me with a roar, and I sidestep to avoid his attack except he surprises me by dodging in my direction. He manages to make me lose my balance and I fall to the ground. He jumps on top of me and pins me in place. He hisses something in some weird language. Was he really talking or just making noises?  
  
He stares at me like an animal. Something gurgles at the back of his throat. I stare in disgust. All of a sudden his mouth opens and some slimy stuff splatters onto my face.  
  
"YUCK!!!" I scream.  
  
With all my might I push him off of me. I just want to kick his ass. We circle each other in a dogfight while I'm wiping my face with the sleeve of my shirt. I make the first move and punch the thing in the face.  
  
"How's that... (punching his face)... you freaking... demon." I say in between swings and dodges. I execute a roundhouse kick to his face.  
  
"Heheheh... You'll have to do better than that, Bitch!" He glares at me. He pulls out a butterfly knife and displays his agility with it.  
  
"Oh, shit." I say to myself.  
  
I am able to dodge his knife attacks for a few minutes, but I'm getting tired. I'm not cut out for this, I think to myself, and I'm definitely out of shape.  
  
Breathing heavily, I comment, "Maybe... (pant)... we can... (pant) continue this... (pant)... another time."  
  
He laughs at my suggestion, "Oh, what's the matter? You giving up all ready?... You can't handle me?" He lunges at me. I am able to avert his first attempt by slightly deflecting his hand, but he surprises me. He manages to quickly spin around, grab me around the neck and plunge the knife into my stomach.  
  
**********  
  
Dante is at his hotel room now getting dressed. He's no longer at the cabin. He puts on his shirt and runs his hand through his hair to comb it down. When suddenly, he keels over in pain and drops to his knees holding his stomach, "Aaahh!" He grits his teeth. 


	8. Chapter 8

I guess it's been a few weeks since my last chapter - kind of hard to write/post a story when no one seems to read and review it, but anyway, since I've all ready started... Blah, blah, blah... Yada, yada, yada... On with the next chapter...  
  
Nightmares Hell Queen - thanks for the compliment! (  
  
Chapter 8  
  
I sit there holding my stomach thinking that I'm such a fool. I look at my hands. "There's so much blood." I close my eyes tightly and think to myself how much this hurts. I get up slowly wondering what I should do next. If I go back into the club Nikki will wonder what happened, and if I leave, she'll definitely be mad at me again. I walk towards the opening of the back door.  
  
Why didn't he finish me? I can still see his demon face and hear his raspy voice, "I'll see you around, Honey. Don't you go dying on me; I'm not done with you yet. Let's just say, 'it was nice to meet you'." Then remembering that he had kissed me after he had removed the knife from my stomach, I wince and wipe my mouth disgusted.  
  
"Arggh!!" I say angrily.  
  
I stand against the wall holding my stomach and wishing that the pain would subside. Without a second thought, I enter the back door and go into the women's bathroom. A couple of women stare at me in horror seeing the blood that covered the front of my shirt and my hands.  
  
I ignore them and head for the sinks. I place my hand at the side of the sink for support and turn on the water. I see the blood slowly dripping from my hand into the center. "Uhh..." I feel like I'm going to be sick.  
  
I look in the mirror to make sure my face looks okay. Besides the fact that my hair's a little tousled, there's nothing else wrong. I go back to washing my hands.  
  
I unbutton my blouse to examine my wound. It's hard to see anything. There's so much blood. I grab some paper towels and slowly wipe the blood from my midsection. It doesn't seem to hurt as much, and the bleeding seems to have stopped. I grab more paper towels and soak them under the water to help with the drying blood.  
  
I'm just about through cleaning up all the blood from my skin, and I notice that there isn't a hole or cut.  
  
"What?" I look back at my blood soaked shirt and feel for the hole. I place the front of my shirt under the running water to clean the blood off. The water turns crimson. I ring out the water and what's left of the blood, and spread my shirt out in front of me. I see the hole and poke my finger through it. I lift my shirt and feel my stomach again. Thinking that I might be looking in the wrong place, I lay my shirt flat against my stomach and look to see where the hole laid. I poke my finger through the hole again. Nothing.  
  
"What? I know I was stabbed. There's blood all over the place and... I felt it." I say lifting my shirt and looking again.  
  
The door opens to the bathroom and a couple of women enter. I act like nothing's wrong and remove my shirt to clean the rest of the blood and the slime.  
  
**********  
  
Dante is sitting at the foot of the bed holding his stomach wondering what the hell happened. He felt a connection to something, but he does not know to who or what. Thinking he must have just eaten something bad, he shakes the notion from his mind and heads for the door. He grabs his jacket, a dagger, Rebellion, Ebony and Ivory, and walks out.  
  
"Now, I've got to find out what's going on. But first, I've got to find Alma." He says to himself.  
  
Walking through the hotel lobby people are staring at him in shock. A kid points at Dante and says, "Mommy, I want to be just like him! I want a sword just like his." He yanks at his moms dress, "Huh, huh, Mommy?"  
  
Dante walks by and winks at the boy.  
  
The mother grabs her son's hand and ushers him away, "These locals are weird."  
  
Dante laughs at the lady's remark.  
  
After exiting the hotel, Dante pauses a bit wondering which direction to head. "She's around here somewhere. I can feel her close by." As if by instinct, he heads in the direction of Roxy's.  
  
Walking down the sidewalk, Dante is stopped by a local police officer. The officer says something in Turkish, but Dante doesn't know the language so he shakes his head.  
  
The officer sighs and says in English, "You have a permit for..." and points to the sword on Dante's back.  
  
"Oh. Uh, well, you see, it's not real. It's a prop." Dante says trying to come up with an excuse.  
  
"Prop?" the officer says confused.  
  
"Yeah, prop..." Dante stops and thinks. "Uhhh, " he snaps his fingers trying to think of another word, "it's not real... fake?"  
  
The officer gives him an uh-huh look and motions for Dante to give him Rebellion.  
  
Dante sighs, "Uh... That's not going to work. Sorry." And with that Dante runs and double jumps to the roof of one of the buildings.  
  
Running along the rooftops, Dante can hear the Turkish cop blowing his whistle. Dante shakes his head thinking, if only that cop knew what the hell was actually going on around him, he'd think twice about blowing his whistle at a demon slayer. By now, the whistle is fading in the distance. Dante smiles knowing that the demon blood in him has its advantages.  
  
**********  
  
I guess I'll dry this under the hand dryer, it'll be better than walking out in it wet, I think to myself. Just when I think everything's going to be okay, I sense a presence.  
  
"Shit, not again." I say trying to put my shirt back on.  
  
I walk out the bathroom, and there's a man in his early to mid forties standing by the back door. He's in a suit and tie. I act like I don't notice him and continue to walk back into the crowd.  
  
"Uh, excuse me, Ms. Lyn." I feel a hand gently grab my arm.  
  
Noticing his touch didn't make my skin crawl, I turn around and pretend that he didn't startle me, "Yes?"  
  
"May I have a word with you in private?" He says smiling.  
  
I hesitate a bit, "How do you know my name?"  
  
"I have some information that may be of importance to you." He says looking at me and ignoring my question.  
  
"I think you have the wrong person." I say walking away.  
  
He yells behind me, "It's about a fellow named Dante!"  
  
I stop and turn back around. I turn my head to find Nikki, but she's too busy with her new buddies. I take a deep breath and walk back to the man.  
  
"Can we go somewhere so that I don't have to yell!" I say yelling.  
  
He nods his head.  
  
He points towards the back door. I eye him suspiciously. He opens the back door for me and there is a limo waiting.  
  
"In there?" I ask even more suspicious.  
  
"Don't worry, Ms. Lyn. I'm not here to hurt you, just to warn you." He says opening the door of the limo.  
  
As I'm entering the limo, I shake my head slightly thinking to myself, what did I get myself into now?  
  
The man enters the limo and sits opposite me. The limo starts to drive off. I give him a look.  
  
"Don't worry, the driver will drop you off at the front of Roxy's once we're through talking." He says trying to ease my nerves.  
  
I nod my head, "Okay, what do you want to tell me?" I don't want to say too much just in case it may be a trap, but he knows Dante. That's enough to spark my interest. I sit and wait for an answer.  
  
"I didn't want to make it obvious that you were being watched." He pauses.  
  
"I was being watched?" I say. My brow lifts.  
  
"But earlier today, when you were at the museum with your friend, we were following a man. A very dangerous man."  
  
"Okay, what does this have to do with me?" Thinking to myself that he obviously wasn't only following the dangerous man.  
  
"For some reason, he has his eyes set on you... And we want to make sure you're not in trouble. You may want to keep your distance."  
  
"And who is this guy?"  
  
"Well, his name is Dante. He's... sort of wanted. Like I said, a very dangerous man."  
  
Of course, I'm not at all surprised by his answer. "And how do I know I can trust what you're saying? You may be lying to protect yourselves." I say trying to pry for more information.  
  
"Well, we know that he deals with the black arts. Friends with the devil, if you might say so."  
  
"And who are you guys? FBI? CIA? Scully and Mulder?" I ask trying to be funny.  
  
"No. Just someone who wants to help." He replies not laughing.  
  
"Why would you want to help me? I don't know you and... like I said, why would you want to help me?" I state curiously realizing he's definitely not a local.  
  
He looks as though he doesn't know what to tell me. "Well, Dante, for some reason, has taken a liking to you. We don't want anyone else involved that doesn't need to be..." He pauses, I think for a dramatic effect. "You see, he's killed many."  
  
I stare without an expression. Dante's some kind of serial killer? "Uh, okay." I say trying not to show any emotion. I quickly change the subject. "You still haven't told me who you are. You know who I am and I don't know how you found that out, but could you at least tell me your name."  
  
He smiles, "Very well. The name's Fulton."  
  
"That's all? Just Fulton?" I ask. Does everyone go by only one name, I think to myself.  
  
I look at him trying to figure him out. I don't feel anything. He doesn't give me the heebie jeebies, but I did feel something before he showed up.  
  
Trying to end this little meeting, I say, "Well, I'll be careful."  
  
"Please, Ms. Lyn, you need to be more than just careful. You probably... ahem... I don't want to scare you, but you need to fear for your life. Especially your friend's."  
  
"Are you threatening my friend's life? Why don't you people just leave her alone? She's not bothering anyone."  
  
He touches my hand and kind of says in an apologetic way, "I'm sorry, I'm not threatening your friend's life. I'm just saying that since Dante wants you, he may go after your friend to get your attention. That's all I'm saying."  
  
"And why do you think he wants me? I'm no one." I ask warily.  
  
Fulton smiles slightly. "You're special."  
  
"Uh, huh... " I say not believing him thinking this conversation is going in circles. "Are you done? Cause I'd like to go if this conversation is over." I say a little annoyed now.  
  
He smiles and nods then motions for the driver to head back to Roxy's.  
  
**********  
  
I stand there looking at the back of the limo as it's pulling away.  
  
What the hell was that all about? I scratch my head. What would Dante want with me? Do I trust what he's saying? Who's he to tell me...these things? I take a deep breath and head back into the club.  
  
"Alma, who was that?" I hear Nikki's voice.  
  
I see her standing by the entrance. She starts walking towards me.  
  
"You saw a limo and had to see who it was, huh? Disappointed?" I say sarcastically.  
  
"Please..." She rolls her eyes. "Did you meet a rich foreign guy?" She asks as her face brightens.  
  
"No. Mistaken identity kind of thing."  
  
"Was he trying to sell you something? Or was he trying to buy you??" She asks almost hysterical.  
  
"No, nothing like that..." I shake my head, "He just thought I was someone he knew and when he stopped, he realized I wasn't the person."  
  
"But I saw you get out of it."  
  
I stare at her. Oh great. What do I say now?  
  
"You did get out of it, right?"  
  
I sigh. "Okay, okay, he was trying to hire my services. I got in and gave him my services..." I lift an eyebrow and wait for an answer.  
  
"What?!" She screams.  
  
I laugh and reply, "With my fists."  
  
She stares at me. I think she's about to blow a fuse.  
  
She slaps my arm and shouts, "God, you can be an asshole sometimes." Then she pouts, "That's not funny."  
  
"Sorry." I say.  
  
She's still pouting.  
  
"Let's just go back to the hotel and get some sleep. I'm tired." I say trying to sound convincing.  
  
"You go, I'm gonna stay here a little longer. Phillip wants me to go somewhere else with him."  
  
An eyebrow lifts, "Phillip?" I ask perplexed.  
  
"Yeah, he's a nice guy... and..."  
  
I interrupt, "I don't think you should go anywhere with some stranger."  
  
"Why? You were with Dante."  
  
"But..." I stammer trying to think of a good excuse, "Dante's different and, and... We're in a foreign country. There's a lot of weirdos out there. They may kidnap you or worse."  
  
She ignores the warning and questions my explanation of Dante, "What's different about Dante, huh?"  
  
My lips purse and I stand there angry. "Argh. Fine! You go with Phillip or whatever his name is! Don't say I didn't warn you! And, for your information, I'm not with Dante, am I?!" I walk away pissed and without looking at her, I yell, "If you get hurt, don't come crying to me!"  
  
"Humph!" She yells, "You're such a bitch!"  
  
**********  
  
Unbeknownst to me, someone watches in the shadows. Far enough not be seen, and far enough not to be felt.  
  
**********  
  
Dante is standing on a rooftop looking down. He sees me in the distance. I don't notice his presence because I'm so caught up in Nikki's naivety.  
  
"Hi, Dante."  
  
He looks away from my direction. "Trish." He says slightly surprised.  
  
"I'm amazed that you didn't notice I was standing here, nor sensed me."  
  
"I..."  
  
"Did you find a new play toy?" She teases.  
  
He glares at her wondering what she's doing in Turkey.  
  
"Oh, don't give me that look. You haven't seen me in a while and I don't get so much as a 'hey, how yah doin?' from you?" She sighs, "You're getting to be a man of very little words."  
  
"What are you doing here, Babe?" He asks a little suspicious.  
  
"Humph... See?" She puts her hands on her hips and taps her foot.  
  
"..." Dante stands there with no change in demeanor.  
  
A little annoyed, Trish says, "Oh, very well... I heard you needed help."  
  
"Needed help? Who told you that?"  
  
"You called and left a message at my place." Trish claims.  
  
Dante gives her this yeah-sure look.  
  
Trish says dryly, "Gee, I love you too."  
  
Dante is now looking back in my direction.  
  
Trish walks up next him and hugs him hard.  
  
"Trish?! What the...?" He says trying to pry her off him.  
  
"I don't bite, Dante. I just want a hug. Can't you give me that much?"  
  
Dante sighs and hugs her lightly.  
  
I feel a presence. I know that feeling. It's Dante. Wait, there's something else. I look around trying to sense where. I walk a few more steps and something catches my attention on the rooftops. I look up and observe Dante and a blonde haired woman getting a little friendly with each other. At least, that's what it looks like to me. Of course, why should I care?  
  
I stand there for a moment not moving. Who is that chick? She's sure emitting some kind of energy. It's not the same kind of feeling I felt from the guy I bumped into or the guy who kicked my ass. This one's a little different, actually, significantly different. Pure evil.  
  
Disgusted, I continue walking towards the hotel. I stop. Wait a minute. Didn't Fulton say that Dante's dangerous? I better hurry and hide before he sees me.  
  
I run into the lobby of the hotel and realize Nikki may be in danger. What do I do now? I need to sit down and gather my thoughts. I need to rationally think about this. I decide to sit in the bar so that I would have a good view of the front door. I lean up against the counter and place my forehead into the palm of my hand. I must find out what's going on. Everything's so confusing.  
  
Out of the corner of my eye, I see the bartender moving my way. "Hi, Ma'am. What would you like to drink?"  
  
I look at the bartender, "uh, beer?"  
  
**********  
  
"Okay, Trish, you can let go now." Dante slowly pulls her arms away from his neck.  
  
"Sorry", she says while moving her foot as if embarrassed, "I just missed you that's all."  
  
Dante smirks. He looks back onto the streets and notices I have disappeared.  
  
"Who you looking for?" Trish queries.  
  
"A friend."  
  
"Guy? Girl?" Trish curiously asks.  
  
Dante makes a side glance and ignores the question.  
  
Trish eyes him, "Oh?"  
  
Dante moves to the next rooftop to get a better view. He looks back to see if Trish is following close behind. She's nowhere to be seen. 


	9. Chapter 9

Well, let's see... more reviews would be nice... ¬_¬ Sigh...  
  
Rabenkind - Thanks! I have been trying to figure out how to differentiate between thought and actual speech, but can't seem to figure out how to do it. I'm trying one way by rewording the sentence. And I'm glad you enjoyed the story so far... ^_^  
  
Oni Don - Thanks, Dude! Thanks for the feedback too.  
  
Okay, shall we continue??  
  
Chapter 9  
  
Nikki's walking arm in arm with Phillip. She's smiling while watching him talk. She must be enjoying the sound of his accent. She probably doesn't even understand a single word he's saying, but he must be singing like an angel, because she looks as though she's died and gone to heaven.  
  
They are about to turn a corner when a blonde haired woman stops in their path.  
  
Phillip smiles and says something in Turkish. Probably 'excuse me'. The blonde lady smiles back and in English, she replies, "Oh, I don't think so, Sugar." She raises her arm as if she's about to grab him, but he flies back about 20 feet.  
  
Nikki stares in terror, "Oh, my, God. Phillip!" Nikki looks at the blonde lady, "What did you do that for?!"  
  
"What's the matter? You've never seen anyone do that before?" She winks. "We demons have special powers. Doesn't your best friend talk to you?"  
  
Nikki stares at her blankly. "Demon?!... What friend... what are you talking about?!" Nikki yells.  
  
"Oh? Your dark haired friend that just stammered away, remember her? The one you called bitch. You really ought to ask her about her evil side."  
  
Nikki stares at her blankly. "What are you talking about? Who?! Alma?! I think you have the wrong person!... I don't understand!" Nikki says sounding a little confused and annoyed.  
  
"Is that her name? Well, I guess I'll just have to introduce myself later, but for now I've got to go. Don't want to over extend my welcome." She says with a smirk.  
  
Nikki asks fearful, "Who are you?! What do you want?!"  
  
The blonde lady pulls out a sword. Nikki gasps and tries to run but the lady grabs her. "Oh, no you don't. You said you wanted to know who I am. Well, let me let you in on a little secret."  
  
She plunges the sword into Nikki's stomach and then slowly pushes it until it could no longer go any further. She whispers into her ear, "The name's Trish." After saying that she pulls the sword out.  
  
Nikki's eyes are distant and a tear falls down her cheek, "Alma." She slumps down onto the sidewalk.  
  
Trish has a grin on her face that would send shivers up Dante's spine. She drops the sword and dashes into the shadows.  
  
Phillip was all ready running through the streets calling for help when he saw Trish plunge the sword into Nikki.  
  
**********  
  
I look at the front door of the hotel and some feeling inside me tells me something's not right. I drink the last of my beer and head through the lobby. I start to walk faster thinking something's definitely not right. I can feel Dante's presence still in the area.  
  
I push open the doors and see someone yelling something in Turkish. I don't understand Turkish, but I can tell this guy is panicking. I run towards the panicked man.  
  
I grab him and ask, "What's wrong?"  
  
He's talking so fast, that I don't know if he's talking in English or Turkish.  
  
"Please, calm down. You've got to slow down. I don't understand what you're saying."  
  
Phillip is sobbing, "Ni, Ni, Nikki... She's d, dead."  
  
I look at him in shock realizing who he is. "What? What did you just say?"  
  
He repeats, "Ni, Nikki's d, dead."  
  
"Where?!?!"  
  
He points.  
  
I move towards that direction running as fast as I can.  
  
"NIKKI!!!" I see two silhouettes in the distance.  
  
Dante is sitting next to Nikki holding her head up.  
  
My anger flares. I grab Dante by his collar and practically lift him up. "What did you do to her?!" I ask, the rage in me boiling to the point of no return. I look down at Nikki and see blood. Lots of it.  
  
I shove Dante out of the way and sit next to Nikki to cradle her in my arms. "Nikki, Nikki... No, God. Please no." I say, tears forming in my eyes.  
  
She's covered in blood, her hands lay limp to the sides, but she's breathing... just barely.  
  
I put her head to my cheek and rock back and forth, "Please Nikki, don't die on me. I love you. Please don't die on me."  
  
I hear a groan, and she coughs a little. I look at her face. Her eyes are open and she smiles.  
  
"Oh, Nikki..." I say crying.  
  
She starts to say something, "...T... Tr..."  
  
"Don't talk. Everything will be okay... Shhh." I kiss her forehead.  
  
"Sh...She wants...t..to kill you."  
  
"What? Who wants to kill me?"  
  
"Tr...Trisshhh." She looks past my shoulder and sees Dante behind me. She calls out to him. "Dante." But I think to myself that she's calling out her killers  
  
"Who's Trish, Nikki?" I look at her and her eyes are closed. "Nikki? Nikki?!... N...NOOOO!!!" I hold her tight.  
  
Dante hears the name but acts like he doesn't know anything. Dante puts a hand on my shoulder. I shrug it off.  
  
"You have some nerve sticking around after killing my best friend." I say not looking up.  
  
"I didn't kill her." Dante says irritably.  
  
"YOU LIE! I heard her call your name out!"  
  
Dante doesn't say anything. He doesn't know why Nikki said his name. Maybe because she saw him and it was a familiar face. Or maybe because she was hoping he'd be able to help her. Whatever the reason, Dante didn't have an explanation. All he knows is that he didn't kill her.  
  
By now I can hear sirens in the distance.  
  
Dante's voice pierces through the noise, "We've got to go." He says pulling on my arm.  
  
"Go where?! Leave me alone! Isn't killing Nikki enough?! Go away!" I yell in between sobs.  
  
Dante yanks me up and I drop Nikki, "We've got to go NOW!!"  
  
"What?! We can't leave Nikki here! You're crazy! You're insane!"  
  
He gives me a whatever look, grabs me around the waist and yanks me up onto the rooftops with him.  
  
As soon as he lets go of me on the rooftops, I perform a backspin kick to his stomach. He flies back and lands with a thud. I grab at my stomach wincing from an unknown source of pain.  
  
Dante quickly gets up and sprints towards me. He pulls Rebellion out and swings at me with such force that it sparks and crumbles the bricks behind me. I'm so angry that I don't even realize I have no weapon to defend myself with, nor the fact that he could have just taken my head off. All I see is red. I just want to kill him.  
  
I lunge at him and try to knock him back down, but Dante's much faster, smarter and experienced. He's able to dodge any move I make on him. I start to tire and he just dodges and blocks. I stop to catch my breath. He stands there with a smirk.  
  
"Are you finished?" Dante says with an eyebrow cocked.  
  
"(Breathing heavily), Why are you still around?" I ask eyeing him.  
  
"Because I didn't kill Nikki."  
  
I still don't believe him, but I disregard the statement. "Well, you almost tried to kill me. If I hadn't of ducked, I'd be headless right now." I say still trying to catch my breath.  
  
Dante shakes his head in disbelief. "Well, what do you expect? You kicked me and I wasn't about to just lie there."  
  
"So you got angry and decided to lash out at me?! Excuse me, but I'm the one with a dead friend... that you killed." I say accusingly. I can feel my skin starting to get sweaty. My dark brown eyes shimmer with a hint of red. I lunge at Dante. "You fucking murderer!!!" Dante sidesteps to avoid me. He yawns.  
  
My mouth drops in shock. 'He mocks me? How dare he.' My hands and teeth clench tightly. I close my eyes to concentrate and focus my anger. My body's hot. I open my eyes and sprint towards Dante.  
  
Dante's eyes widen, for when I open my eyes they are a pale blue that burned with a fire.  
  
As soon as I approach him, I begin to strike at him with my fists and legs. I am striking with such force that it looks as though my movements are striking the air so quickly that the air molecules outline my arms and feet in a blur. Dante is able to dodge every attempt I make. Except for one.  
  
I fake a kick and end up pouncing him with my whole body. I tackle him to the ground and pin him there. His arms are trapped under my legs as I sit atop his chest. Dante just stares up at me.  
  
"So what are you gonna do now?" Dante comments, as he lies there not moving.  
  
My fists are clenched by his head and I stare back not knowing what to do. I think to myself what do I do now? I've got him, but do I kill him? I clench my jaw and close my eyes tightly. Dante seizes the opportunity and yanks his arms from under me, places them on my shoulders and flips me over his head. I land on my back and now he pins me. My eyes open and they are no longer pale blue.  
  
Dante repeats his question. "So what are you gonna do now?"  
  
I feel the anger subside and I just lie there staring into Dante's eyes. My eyes begin to water and I turn my head to look away.  
  
For some reason, he knows that I'm not going to try anything else so he loosens his grip on my arms and begins to get up off of me.  
  
I get up slowly and walk towards the edge of the building. I look down to search for Nikki's body. I scratch my head confused and mumble. "...Where's Nikki?"  
  
Dante moves over next to me and looks down. "We gotta go. We've already hung around too long."  
  
I slouch onto my knees. I sigh heavily. "Go where, Dante?"  
  
"Get up. We can't stay here." Dante motions for me to follow.  
  
"I'm so angry... (Sob)... Arrrgh!" I look up at Dante and clench my jaw then stare at the ground. "I don't know what to do anymore."  
  
Dante gets back to my side and lifts me up. "You can't do anything right now. Not even kill me. Come on!"  
  
I look at Dante, tears falling down my face. He looks at me with his pale blue eyes. Inside the deep reaches of his eyes, I can tell he sympathizes, but it isn't the right time for that. He's right. There's nothing I can do. Nikki's body's no longer there. She's dead. And I'm alone in a foreign country with.  
  
"Wait!" I put my hand up to Dante's chest to stop him.  
  
"What?"  
  
"Phillip. He's a witness. He'll be able to tell the police what happened."  
  
Dante shakes his head, "He's dead too."  
  
"What? I just spoke to him."  
  
He motions his hand to follow.  
  
We walk over a couple of rooftops and end up between two alleys.  
  
"I smell... Is that blood?" I comment.  
  
"Yeah, Phil's blood."  
  
I stay silent and follow Dante. He stops and looks at the ground.  
  
"What." I move over by him to look. The alley is fairly dark, but I can make out the outline of a body. Dante kicks it over.  
  
"Ew... Don't do that." I stare in horror. "Phillip!"  
  
Two policemen are running up the alley, "Hey, you two! Stop right there!"  
  
Dante and I look at each other and make a run for the rooftops.  
  
**********  
  
"Did you do what I asked you to?" Psi says, walking down an archway. His hands are entwined and in front of him as if he's praying. The hood of his robe is covering his face.  
  
"Yes, but I don't see how that's going to help." Fulton replies. He still dons the suit and tie he wore during the 'meeting'.  
  
Psi ignores his comment, "How did she take it?"  
  
"She's a little suspicious, but I think I got to her."  
  
"Good, good... And her friend?"  
  
Fulton's face looks puzzled, "Her friend, Sir?"  
  
"Did she kill her?"  
  
"Why would she kill her friend?! That wasn't part of the plan."  
  
Psi turns around quite irritated. His hood falls back and he glares at Fulton. "Not her, you idiot! Kendra! Did Kendra get the job done?!"  
  
"Oh, yes, she did." His head bows down. "That's kind of smart that you made her to look like Dante's old partner."  
  
Psi smirks and pats Fulton on the shoulder, "You did a good job, Fulton. You did a good job." 


End file.
